Dining Out Jersey talks Tequila
– The exclusive interview with Guy Fieri, Host of Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives
GUY FIERI
Takes on the Jersey Shore
Diners, Drive-Ins, Dives & TEQUILA
The Interview
TARA JEAN:
Welcome to Jersey! We know you have traveled to all the States with Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives. So far, you have been to over 40 New Jersey locations to film the show. Are you having a good time at the Jersey Shore?
GUY:
Oh yeah, it’s been fantastic! It’s been great, and yesterday we were in Asbury. We’ve got a lot of friends here. There are a lot of triple D (Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives) friends — a lot of residents of “Flavortown.” And a lot of tequila drinkers, evidently. Everybody in Jersey’s happy! People want to have a good time. Especially the closer you get to the water, everybody gets happier.
A Girl Party
TARA JEAN:
Besides stopping in to visit some local restaurants for your show, you are here in Jersey to promote your Santo Tequila. Today, you visited Wall Township to sign the tequila bottles and greet your fans. Let’s say I have a big party, and my girlfriends are over. What would be the best tequila cocktail to offer? Which one of your five tequila flavors, and how would you make it?
GUY:
Well, I’m a very simple guy. I just take it right out of the bottle like you girls. I just take the cork out, and then I pass it around. Then everybody does their shot. That’s where you get things started. That’s going to take the edge off.
TARA JEAN:
OK! Which one of your Santo Tequila flavors do you recommend we start with?
GUY:
So, I’m a Blanco fan. I think the best you can tell about a tequila is from Blanco. Because that is the truth. There’s no aging, there’s no barrel, there’s no anything else that goes on. There’s no evaporation. There’s no refining the flavor. It’s just straight up what you get. So, did you pick ripe fruit? Did you process it correctly? Did you roast it? Did you ferment it? Did it get the right attention? And it always starts with the ripe fruit — if you don’t have ripe fruit, you get sour mash. Blah, blah, blah!
After that, I’m a Caliente Margarita guy. I want mine to be very simple. Muddle a small jalapeno, muddle a little bit of cilantro, and mix with ice. I don’t want it blended; I don’t want it diluted to that point. Add a little agave syrup and freshly squeezed lime. What you see is what you get. Maybe a little salt on the rim if you want, but I like the tequila to speak for itself.
Guy Fieri’s Caliente Tequila Cocktail
Caliente Tequila Cocktail
- 2 oz Santo Tequila Blanco
- 1 bunch fresh cilantro, leaves only
- 2 jalapeno peppers (one for muddle, one for garnish)
- .25 oz agave syrup
- Lime
- Salt for rim if desired
Muddle jalapeno and cilantro. Put in a pitcher with Santo Tequila Blanco. Add agave and lime juice. Stir, then pour over cold ice. Garnish with a jalapeno slice. If you like salt, moisten the rim of the glass with water and dip it in salt. Fill with ice, then pour in the drink. The Mainstay in Asbury Park Mixologist : Michelle Reese Photographer: Brian McCabe
What’s Guy’s Take on Jersey?
CRISTIN:
I’d like to ask your take on Jersey Lingo. First up: For Sunday dinner, is it sauce or gravy?
GUY:
Well, see, I’m a redneck kid from Northern California but was raised by hippies! But I was born in Columbus, Ohio, and I’m Irish Italian. Let’s see, I cook and love in Italian, and I drink and fight in Irish. So, it’s not a bad combo, right? I’m just kidding, I don’t fight. So, about the sauce and gravy, I know everybody, and for all my East Coast friends it’s gravy, but in California, we call it sauce.
CRISTIN:
For ice cream, is it jimmies or sprinkles?
GUY:
I don’t know anything about the ice cream; I don’t know what jimmies are so I have no clue. But if I eat ice cream, it’s coffee ice cream.
CRISTIN:
At a deli, is it a sub or a hoagie?
GUY:
Oh, it’s a sub. But, actually, my wife is from Providence, Rhode Island, so it’s a grinder.
Guy Fieri's Jersey Shore Stops 2024
Over the last few months, Guy Fieri has visited these Jersey Shore locations for his Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives series and Santo Tequila promotion:
Mutiny BBQ, Asbury Park
Taka, Asbury Park
The Mainstay, Asbury Park
Capitoline, Asbury Park
Skratch Kitchen, Bradley Beach
Seed to Sprout, Avon-by-the-Sea
Cave Bistro, Avon-by-the-Sea
10th Ave Burrito, Belmar
La Dolce Vida, Belmar
Leggett’s, Manasquan
Jersey Shore BBQ, Pt. Pleasant Beach
Heights 167, Pt. Pleasant Beach
Visit the Mainstay & Black Swan for the Guy Fieri Caliente Tequila Cocktail Experience!
Dining Out Jersey Shore’s Tara Jean McDonald Bonanno and Cristin McCarthy Krokosz met up with Guy Fieri in Wall Township to do a quick interview before his
day started. Listen to the interview on 100.1 WJRZ Dining Out Jersey Podcast or watch on the Dining Out Jersey YouTube Channel!
LOCATION: The Mainstay in Asbury Park. Mixologist: Michelle Reese. Photographer: Brian McCabe